Let’s Get to Know Doug Aldrich

Do you guys like LA metal?
There are so many cool bands out there like Ratt, Dokken, Mötley Crüe and Quiet Riot, Poison, and Stryper, just to name a few!
In this article, I want to look at the signature pickup of Doug Aldrich, who was a member of the legendary LA metal band, Lion.

First, let's start with the background music for this article.
Listen to it while you’re catching the LA breeze produced by Doug's cool guitar playing all over your body.
This Doug is too cool…

Equipment used by Doug

First, let's take a quick look at Doug's equipment.
Doug was a fan of Charvel/Jackson guitars, but when Jackson joined the Fender family, he began using a Stratocaster, which was later replaced by a humbucker in the rear.
He also used Seymour Duncan's SH-5 Custom and JB during the time he was using Jackson! Nowadays, Doug also uses Les Pauls equipped with SUHR's signature pickups, which is also the theme of this issue.

Quote from SUHR official website

SUHR / Doug Aldrich Signature

Now, let me explain Doug's signature, which is the main theme of this issue.

⇒ The list of SUHR / Doug Aldrich

You may think, "There are this many signatures?..." but there are three major types.

• Neck (50mm)
• Bridge (50mm)
• Bridge (53mm)

These three types are available in a variety of colors.
The reason there are two types of bridges is to match the string pitch of the guitar on which it will be installed. 50mm is suitable for guitars with Gibson pitch, such as Les Paul, and 53mm for Fender-style wide pitch guitars! If you want to add a pickup on a guitar with Floyd Rose, you can choose 53mm for the bridge position!
If you want to put a Gibson pitch (50mm) humbucker on a guitar with Floyd Rose, it will give you a cool 80s look (but I don't recommend it because the balance of each string will be bad).

Let’s compare the pics that I have on here.

Photo 1

The pickups that are 53mm wide on the SUHR are mounted against the Floyd Rose unit.

Each string is neatly placed directly above the pole piece, so the overall sound pickup is in good balance.

Photo 2

The pickups that are 50mm wide on the SUHR are mounted on the Floyd Rose unit.

Compared to the first photo, each string is offset from the pole piece.

This style was common before the wide pitch humbuckers were introduced.

I digress, but let's touch on the all-important sound.
First, the major difference between the Bridge and Neck is the DC resistance.
The Neck has a DC resistance of 9.0K, while the Bridge has 17.5K.
This is not limited to Doug's signature pickups, but the resistance on the Neck side is often set lower for reasons such as volume differences depending on the position.
It is not a general rule that higher resistance value means higher power and louder sound! But I will not mention it here.

The Bridge side has a piercing sound in the mid and high frequencies with a good sound extraction, which is essential for LA metal.
And then, I can really feel Doug's sound without the gaudiness.
The bass is thick and very well-balanced, so I highly recommend this to guitarists who are not fans of Doug Aldrich to give this a try!

The Neck position has a warm sound and is also very well balanced, with great chord separation.
Since it is designed to be combined with high power pickups, it has a sound that is very compatible with distorted lead sounds. It will be fun to combine it with other standard pickups and find your own unique combination.

Summary

Well, this time I featured Doug Aldrich's signature pickup.
It is a very limited subject and I digress here and there along the way, but it is a very wonderful product filled with Doug Aldrich's attention to detail, and it’s a must-try pickup even for those who are not LA metal fans!
If you are interested in these pickups, please check them out at Sound House!

⇒ The list of SUHR / Doug Aldrich